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HKUST 2015-2016 Annual Report
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Total Learning Experience
The Professional Development Courses were introduced
in 2013-14 to make sure that MPhil and PhD students
take away an all-round learning experience from their
time at HKUST, including professional conduct, career
development, communication skills, entrepreneurship
and self-management. Over 2015-16, the courses
underwent a review by an external expert that effectively
helped shape its future direction. In addition, research
postgraduates have been encouraged to broaden their
horizons by undertaking academic studies overseas, with
the support of travel grants.
To diversify perspectives, encourage cross-disciplinary
interaction, and increase the social nature of a postgraduate
degree program, the University organized regular cultural
trips and enrichment activities during the year. Festival
gatherings and outings have strengthened bonds and
mutual support among the postgraduate community. The
Office of Postgraduate Studies also arranged distinguished
lectures by notable leaders inHongKong, includingDr Victor
Fung, who drew a full house for his talk on “Innovation and
Hong Kong’s Future Competitiveness”. Continuous efforts
will bemade on this front.
Intellectual Capital and Industry Collaboration
With postgraduate education playing a pivotal role
in the creation of intellectual capital for industry and
the economy, the University sought to propel more
local talents to join the research community and to
foster industry collaboration, through the launch
of a Collaborative Research Studies Program. The
program aims to encourage companies to tap into
HKUST’s research capabilities and sponsor employees
to pursue further studies at the University. To nurture
air transport professionals for the region, a MSc in
International Air Transport Operations Management
and a MSc in Aeronautical Engineering are set to
launch in 2016-17 in collaboration with the École
Nationale de l’Aviation Civile in France. Two new
taught postgraduate programs were introduced in
2015-16, namely, the MSc in Analytical Chemistry and
MA in Chinese Culture.
SPURRING INNOVATION
HKUST initiated, hosted and participated in a series
of innovation and entrepreneurship events in 2015-16,
reaching out locally, nationally and internationally to
provide opportunities for students to develop their
creative thinking and take forward their ideas.
Student Enterprise
Two Entrepreneurship Weeks were held on campus
during the year. The first event in November 2015
included a five-day exhibition, entrepreneurship talks
and seminars. The second was held in April 2016,
encompassing sessions on financial technology
(FinTech), blockchain and cryptocurrency, mobile
banking, and pitching an idea. As part of the
activities, the student-ledhackUST2016 (Hackathon@
HKUST) was successfully held, with around 440 students
and alumni in 91 teams from eight local universities
taking part, almost double the number of participants
and teams from the previous year. At AngelHack, the
world’s largest global hackathon event, HKUST student
team Plain Exchange won the World Championship.
The team was also named Best FinTech Startup by
Barclays Bank.
In September 2015, HKUST trained and led the Hong
Kong delegation at the Second Grand Challenges
Global Summit Student Day, an international event jointly
organized by the Chinese Academy of Engineering, US
National Academy of Engineering, and the UK’s Royal
Academy of Engineering. Hong Kong team Proxision,
mainly comprising HKUST students, gained the second
runner-up place at the event.
The inception of the University’s entrepreneurial
community space, The BASE, has created a cool
and continuous platform for exploring and inspiring
an entrepreneurship culture on campus. Over 100
activities, including workshops, forums, and sharing
sessions, have been held by various University units
and student organizations since The Base was
launched in September 2015. These have included the
Entrepreneurship Center’s Skill-set Workshop Series,
BASE Entrepreneurship Stories, information sessions
with appealing titles such as “Make Your Idea Rock” and
“Start-up Salad”, and a FinTech forum co-hosted with
PayPal.
Techno-creativity Encounters
HKUST’s 6th Annual One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship
Competition extended its horizons to Beijing, Shenzhen,
Guangzhou and Macau, in addition to Hong Kong, with
the top three winners in each region set to compete
in the grand final at HKUST Fok Ying Tung Research
Institute inNansha, Guangzhou, in August 2016. Over 500
teams entered the competition, which seeks to nurture
start-ups and young entrepreneurs. The Hong Kong
competition drew 100 teams, mainly HKUST faculty,
staff, students and alumni from the Schools of Science,
Engineering and Business and Management. Sundial
Technology, a team comprising four HKUST students,
went on to win the President’s Prize, Innovation Prize and
Student Prize for its self-cleaning, anti-reflection film to
boost solar panel performance. The runners-up were
NeoForest, with a novel air purifier to pump forest-grade
air into an indoor environment, and Perfuso, who created
a cost-effective and time-saving treatment to ease side
effects for dialysis patients.
